God’s Patience Waits.
because they formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. 1 Peter 3:20 ESV
Patience is hard, especially when we feel powerless and in pain, when we feel persecuted or unjustly treated. Patience is harder still when we feel alone, or isolated in our struggle and suffering. When we face these challenges, it’s not enough to know that we are meant to be patient, not is our effort enough to realise the patience we pursue.
The Apostle Peter wrote profoundly about God’s grace and the way that God patiently bears with us when we sin and fall short of His standard. Peter understood grace and God’s patience so deeply because of the way he denied the Son of God, and the way that the Lord Jesus so lovingly and openly confronted, corrected and restored Peter (John 21:15-19). Through his experience he draws our attention to God’s patience in giving the world Noah’s preaching for many years before executing His mighty judgement on their sin. The justice of God’s flood and the mercy of saving Noah and the creatures on the ark are a foreshadowing of the cross of our Lord Jesus.
The Holy Spirit shows us, through Peter’s writing and life experience, that learning to be patient begins with learning about God’s patience. When we appreciate that God is patient with us, and our enemies, and yet is not indifferent to sin and suffering. We grow stronger, by the power of the Holy Spirit, in our ability to trust that God will do what is right at exactly the right time. God is merciful and gracious and slow to anger but He will not leave the guilty unpunished (Exodus 34:6-7). The fact that God allowed His Son, our Lord Jesus to pay the price for our sin, by His death on the cross, reminds us both of the horrendous price of our sin, and the gracious loving compassion and patience of our God. God’s perfect and Holy justice, hand in hand with His unfathomable love and mercy combine to provide the assurance we need to walk on patiently through faith in Him.
Prayer.
Thank You Father God that You are gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and that you forgive our sin, wickedness and rebellion. Lord, thank You for Your patience with us. Please give us the strength to trust You with justice and mercy. Please forgive our sin, and those who sin against us. We pray for Your mercy Lord, on us and on them, and we thank You Lord that we can trust that You are not indifferent to the evil we experience. Thank You Lord that though it may appear that justice is illusive, You promise to bring it to pass, just as surely as Your Son, our Lord Jesus paid for our sin by His own blood. In His precious Name we pray. Amen.
Worship.
Deep within my heart, I know You've won
I know You've overcome And even in the dark,
when I'm undone I still believe it
I live by faith, and not by sight Sometimes miracles take time
While I wait, I will worship Lord, I'll worship Your name While I wait,
I will trust You Lord, I'll trust You all the same
When I fall apart, You are my strength Help me not forget
Seeing every scar, You make me whole You're my healer
I live by faith, and not by sight Sometimes miracles take time
I live by faith, and not by sight Sometimes miracles take time
While I wait, I will worship Lord, I'll worship Your name While I wait,
I will trust You Lord, I'll trust You all the same
You're faithful every day Your promises remain
You're faithful every day Your promises remain…
Service.
When we experience injustice, or are shaken by the evil we see perpetrated in the daily media, we can chose to lose heart or to keep trusting God. That’s not our only choice, nor is it our only responsibility. We can chose to keep our faith in God’s justice and mercy to ourselves, or to go out and encourage others with it. We all need each other, particularly in these tough times. Who is it that is waiting for your encouragement today?